RENEWABUL ENERGY

By Jack McWilliams

I chose this topic because energy is very interesting to me. Also we use energy every day. but do we know where it comes from or how is it made, where the fuel for our car comes from? Also renewable energy could be the solution to all our energy problems. Because of these reasons this is why I chose this topic

This book is dedicated to tunnel snakes.

BIO FUEL ------------------------------------------ pg. 4

HYDRO POWER-----------------------------------pg. 9

GEOTHERMAL ENERGY-----------------------pg. 13

GLOSSARY------------------------------------------pg.17

BIBLIOGRAPHY---------------------------------pg. 18

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

1.4 billion gallons of biofuel were made in 2014, so biofuel has been called the fuel of the future, but it has also been called a killer. Without a doubt biofuel is a good alternative to fossil fuels, but along with some pro’s it has con’s to its usage.

What is biofuel? Biofuel is fuel that comes from plants. According to Biofuel.org.uk there are two different types of biofuel. The first is biodiesel which is fuel that is used in cars and trucks that have a diesel engine. The second biofuel is biojet which is used to power planes with jet engines. Biofuel has been around for a long time. According to National Geographic “biofuel has been around as long cars have”. They also said that “at the start of the 20th century Henry Ford planned to fuel his model T’s with ethanol”. It was not chosen because there was more oil in the country at the time. In addition National Geographic said that diesel and gasoline are bio fuels too, because they come from plants that were compressed over millions of years to become what we call fossil fuels

Pros of biofuel are, according to Biofuel.org.uk, ethanol, which is a type of alcohol and also a biofuel, can be mixed with gasoline which makes it cleaner. Also they said that in some countries like Brazil they run 100% on ethanol because it is widely available. Also because it is a renewable energy source it will be around and we can make it as long as we have plants growing. And also biofuel.org.uk stated that biofuel gives off less soot and smoke. They also produce less sulfur which is a very dangerous chemical and the leading cause of acid rain. Also it produces less ozone, the leading producer of smog.

This is a plant where they make biofuels

Now that we have talked about the pros of biofuels let’s get into the cons of biofuels. First biofuels may even use more energy to harvest them than we save. And they don’t replace as much oil as they use. And according to biofuels.org.uk biofuels do thretan the food supply. This is because the crops are not being grown to eat but to be made into biofuels. And because it uses food it has affected poorer countries because they do not have enough food to both make biofuel and feed the people of that countrey. And according to solarfeeds.com as more land is needed to make biofuel we are takeing away habitats from animals. And there are limitations to its use because in some engines it requires modification to make biofuels work.

In conclusion. biofuels still need to be researched more in depth, but for now we should keep an open mind when it comes to biofuels. And we must also understand that there is no magic cure when it comes to our energy needs. So for now we must rely on good science to guide our decisions with biofuels.

This Buss Runs on Biofuel

Hydropower has been used by the ancient Greeks. It is still used today and according to energy.gov Idaho, Washington,and Oregon, a majority of their energy is coming from hydropower. But along with the good things about it comes with some cons.

What is hydropower? Hydropower is energy that is made from moving water. Colarodo.edu stated that hydropower is the most used form of alternative energy in the world. They also said that Canada is the largest producer of hydropower, and they produce a little over 300 kilowatts an hour. Also, hydropower produces 2.7% of all the energy in the United States of America, and it is is the leading producer of renewable energy in the USA. Also, it is very efficient at making energy because it is 80%-90% efficient at making energy from moving water. And they can produce enormous amount of energy. According to howstuffworks.com, all the hydropower in the world produces 675,000 megawatts. That is equivalent to 3.6 billion barrels of oil. And they can provide 1 billion people with power that is more that the population of the US.

Pros of hydropower. First, as stated in energyinformation.com hydropower is a renewable energy source. This is because when water is used to turn the turbine that will generate energy it does not take away the water so we still have the ability to make energy. So as long as we have water we will be able to make energy using hydropower. Second it is very safe to make. This is because there is no fuel or flammable things that could explode and kill or injure people. And because hydropower does not produce pollution it does not hurt the environment. Also, hydropower is a very flexible energy source because the dams control how much water is given to the turbines. So if they need more power, they can let more water in. And if they need less, they can then let less water into the turbines. Also, hydropower is 80%-90% efficient at making energy from moving water.

Now that the good things have been listed here are the things that make it not so good. According to energyinformativ.org dams are expensive. According to marketplace.org the Hoover Dam which is a dam that has turbines to produce hydropower cost $49 million. Or $750 million in today's money. According to energyinformtiv.org a drought could slow down production of hydropower. This is because if there is less water, there is less water to turn the turbines, so there is less energy being made. And there even environmental consequences to hydropower. This is because the damming of water can affect fish and other marine animals in that area. And finally, there are limited reservoirs that we can use to make dams produce hydropower. So we don't have unlimited places to make hydropower, so there are some limitations to hydropower.

So in conclusion, hydropower is a good way to produce clean and reliable energy. But it does have some cons to using hydropower. But there are people trying to fix these problems. So, overall hydropower as a good reliable renewable energy. And we can plan to see it used more in the future.

This shows the amount of geothermal power plants

Geothermal energy is a way of making energy that is both clean to the earth, but also renewable and reliable to use. But it may sound like the perfect way to make energy right now be there are some cons to it.

The good things about this geothermal energy are. The first according to comfort-pro.com geothermal energy is not weather dependant at all. This means that no matter what the weather's like outside geothermal power plant will still be able to make energy the same way they did before. Also, they said that It is very efficient 300-500%. This is very good compared to other renewable energy sources. They said the reason it was so efficient was because it is just moving heat that has already been made. So unlike nuclear energy were they are making new heat turn a turbine. With geothermal energy, you are just moving heat to turn a turbine.

So now let's talk about the bad things about geothermal energy. Frist according to energy.gov geothermal power plants do cost a lot. They can cost as much as 3000-5000k.We for a small (<1Mwe) power plant. One for your home can cost a lot to. They can cost 10,000-20,000 according to comfort-pro.com. Second they take up a lot of water to make power. And this would be water that would be in the ocean. Or that could be water that we might be able to drink. You also do not need any thing to power it you actually do need electricity to make the geothermal power plant work. This is because you need the energy to make the pumps move the water into the ground then back up. Finally, the damage of the plant can be costly. So if the pipes are damaged underground, they will have to be dug up fixed and then buried again.

In conclusion. Geothermal energy is a good way to make energy. But like everything in life, there is always a downside to thing. But in this case, most of the bad thing are up to you to decide if they are really bad things that will affect your decision if they are good or bad.